An American's Sense of Adventure
by WolfeyKitten
Summary: Fallout AU. Arthur Kirkland was always a little reluctant to live life to the fullest. Maybe a cheerful, fun-loving American can show him that grim wasteland life has a bright side after all. USUK. America/England. Hetalia.


_An American's Sense of Adventure_

_Alfred/Arthur_

_Arthur Kirkland was always a little reluctant to live life to the fullest. Maybe a cheerful, fun-loving American can show him that grim wasteland life has a bright side after all._

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_A/N: Stop right there, friend. While you __**can**__ read this without having read Finem Pax Romana, I wouldn't recomend it, it won't make sense. Go read that story first, and come back when you finish chapter 8. On the other hand, If you're here because you __**have**__ read Finem Pax Romana, then here you go. Arthur's point of view. Ba-bam._

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Arthur shifted his weight uneasily from one foot to the other as he noticed Antonio approaching him at a rapid pace. He looked a little troubled, to say the least about his Spanish acquaintance's current frazzled state. He hadn't been behind his bar for five minutes before he saw the trio quickly advancing across the clearing in front of his bar. He had planned to put a few things in order before heading over the general store- where he also worked as the only clerk in Radwater- but judging by the distress written all over Antonio's face and the annoyed looks of Francis and Gilbert, he guesstimated that his daily routine would be derailed in the next few moments.

And of course, he was right, but not necessarily because of the events about to transpire.

Antonio strode right up to the bar. "Arthur! Lovino! Where's Lovino?" He was absolutely livid, and Arthur looked at him with a blank, dazed stare for a few heartbeats as he watched Gilbert and Francis plop down at a nearby table, propping their heads up in the palms of their hands.

"I'm sorry? I haven't seen him. And I don't want to see you, either , so if you would be so kind-"

_Qué!?_ What do you mean you haven't seen him!?" Antonio's hands slammed against the bartop as he questioned a rather perplexed Brit. Arthur strained to repress his surprise.

"Oh will you relax, Antonio?" Muttered Gilbert, "he'll turn up."

Antonio turned his shoulders towards the other two, in some form of shock. Arthur's brain was falling apart at the sudden commotion caused by the three local raiders. Lovino was missing?

Antonio's strong shoulders slumped as he turned back to Arthur. "Yeah, maybe you guys are right. _Lo siento_, Arthur."

"Yes, yes, just try not to do it again would you? I have a headache as it is, I don't need you three prancing around in front of my bar, kicking up dust and whining about missing children. Honestly." It was true, his temple was burning, and these three were not making the situation any better. He shot a glare at the Frenchman who sat at the table behind Antonio, who only gave him a smile and a flirty little wave. How disgusting.

"Have you tried that little boulder he likes to sit on?" He waved a hand downriver in the general direction of what he knew to be Lovino's rock, taking his eyes off of the frog as he made the gesture.

"Sí, we passed by there on the way back, amigo. He wasn't there."

"Right, well go check again, get away from my pub." He waved them off, picking up a glass to polish it mindlessly as Antonio turned back around to talk to his friends. Despite being focused on the glass, he still listened to the trio's conversation.

"Does anyone want to go with me?"

"I'm staying here," Arthur heard Francis groan. Arthur matched that groan with his own.

"I'll go with ya, buddy." Good, at least two of them would be out of Arthur's hair for a while. He heard the sound of chair legs shuffling in the dirt as Gilbert stood. "The sooner we find this kid, the sooner we can get outa here."

"Thanks, Gil." Antonio's voice sounded slightly relieved.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever. Let's just get going. I can't wait to put Radwater behind us, just being here is starting to make me super uncomfortable, and you know what I'm like when I'm uncomfortable. Do you want me to be uncomfortable, Antonio?"

Arthur thought he heard Antonio chuckle a reply as their voices began to fade. He kept his eyes focused on the glass he was polishing, even though he knew that the scrubbing was in vein. In all his years, he'd never been able to completely polish off all of the grime on any of his various glasses and cups.

He knew exactly what to expect now that Antonio and Gilbert had wondered out of earshot. Arthur could feel Francis's bright blue eyes glaring into him as he polished; he could even hear the feint sound of the Frenchman's fingers tapping on the dirty tabletop just near the bar. Any second now, any second...

"Arthur, _mon cher,_ you won't be able to keep your face in that glass of yours the entire time I am here, you do realize." There it is.

"Maybe not, but I can certainly try," came his reply, not too quickly, but snappy enough to get his message of hostility across without any difficulty.

He sighed dramatically. "Oh, how you hurt me so, Arthur," the sarcasm in his voice was heavy.

Arthur sat his glass down on the bartop. "Do you hang around solely to pick fights with me? Or do you have some other reason for staying back this time? I would offer you a drink if it wasn't _so bloody early. _Anyways, it just so happens that we're fresh out of wine." Arthur threw in some of his own sarcasm. He hadn't had any wine at his bar for ages now.

"Oh, but how could-" Francis paused mid-sentence as he noticed a heavy sound coming from somewhere nearby. The clomping noises of weighted footsteps were emitting from just within earshot, and Arthur and Francis immediately paused to identify the source of this beat. Eyes scanned the clearing, settling on a pair of heavily armored soldiers just to the East of the bar. While Francis had a good view of the soldiers from his position, Arthur had to crane his neck over the counter. Francis was rigid as the soldiers approached, but Arthur remained calm. Though he had never seen armor anything like what the soldiers had equipped, it's not like it was an abnormal occurrence for strangers to pass through this little town.

As they drew closer, Arthur could tell that neither of them were wearing helmets, and both had a weapon swinging in their arms. They both had a dirty blond color to their hair, and their skin was fair and clean, which was more than he could say about most of the people who lived in the barren wasteland around them. Yes, the unforgiving wastes in the height of the summer was a parched, desolate place, despite the wide river Radwater was situated on. The landscape was brown and broken, and the riverside town was struggling in the intense heat of the day. At least Arthur was one of the few who's occupation left him standing in the shade on most days, usually where he would have a fan situated on him during the worst of the heat.

The two armored strangers came to a halt just before Arthur's bar, the obvious leader of the two looking around the clearing silently.

Arthur snapped out of his thoughts to address the newcomers to the town. "Can I help you?" He questioned, lifting one bushy eyebrow.

"Woah, dude, where'd you get that accent?" The stranger who spoke was taller than Arthur, with dark blond hair and a stubborn looking cowlick. He had a striking resemblance to the quiet man next to him, who had a similar hair malfunction in the form of a long strand that leaped out and curled in front of his face. It almost reminded him of Lovino's hair curl.

"Well, it's awful rude of you to ask, now isn't it? It's _British. _I'd doubt that you'd know a thing about that. If you came to hear a strange accent, you can talk to Frenchie over there." Arthur held his chin high as he gestured to the raider sitting at the table with his face to the ground. His blond head shot up at his mention and he sent Arthur a pleading glare before switching his expression immediately. He plastered a fake smile on his lips as the first stranger looked his way, the quieter one keeping his eyes focused on the weapon he was toying with, scratching his fingernail over a piece of dirt on the gray surface.

"Frenchie?" The stranger asked, somewhat unsure.

"_Non, non, _Arthur, _mon ami, _no need to drag me into this, is there?" He gave a nervous laugh as Arthur realized his mistake. These guys were in Radwater for a reason. These two were Enclave soldiers.

The quiet one's head swiveled to the Frenchman at the speed of light, his fingernail abandoning the blemish on his weapon. "Francis?"

Arthur watched as Francis's eyes went wide. The raider paused for a moment, his mouth falling open for a few heartbeats before he could form words.

"Matthew?" He finally squeaked.

Silence fell between the four people in the clearing as Matthew and Francis gawked at each other.

"Do you know each other?" Asked the other stranger, looking between the two with a look of confusion.

Matthew looked to him, his eyes a little clouded. "Alfred, I don't know if I should be here. Maybe we should check out the vault and leave," his voice was quiet as he spoke to Alfred, who _must_ have been his kin.

Francis snapped out of his trance, standing up and hurrying around the table, nearly knocking over his chair as he want.

"Nonsense, Matthew! Is it not fate that brought you back to me, here in the most unlikely of places?" He asked somewhat desperately, laying a hand on Matthew's shoulder and making the man flinch. "Why would you be so hurried to leave if it is indeed destiny that has brought us together once again?"

Arthur couldn't watch Francis do this to the poor boy any longer. "Francis! Have you lost your mind? Go sit down!"

"But Arthur! I must introduce you! This is _Monsieur _Matthew Williams, from the Capital Wasteland, _non?_" Matthew nodded.

"It's a pleasure," he spoke in a monotone.

"Hey! We have business to conduct, if you don't mind!" Spoke Alfred. "I'm Alfred. Alfred F Jones. But you can call me _Corporal _Alfred."

"Corporal? That's not much to be proud of, Mr. Jones," retorted the Englishman.

Alfred looked a little confused. "How did you know that?"

Suddenly, Matthew chimed in. "Probably because he's not an idiot, Alfred."

"Right. So what do you boys want from me?"

Alfred cleared his throat. "From what we understand, there's been a breach in the security of Vault..." He paused to think.

"Twenty seven, Alfred."

"Vault twenty seven!" He proclaimed with the assistance of Matthew. "And according to our files, there was a terrible outbreak of some crazy disease in that vault or something, a hella long time ago. Super deadly. But anyways, the vault was _supposed _to stay closed to contain the disease, but it looks like someone's gone and cracked her open. While it could be an inside job, we have evidence that an outside force is responsible. Do you know anything about that, Arthur?"

Arthur's stomach flipped and he felt a little sick. Lovino could be carrying a deadly disease? What if he had infected him? What if they were _all _infected? He glanced at Francis, who stood behind Matthew shaking his head desperately.

"No, no not at all." He said finally. "A vault? Opening up out here? That's preposterous."

_Okay, don't overdo it, _he reminded himself.

"I mean, of all places-"

_Stop talking now, Arthur. _He paused.

"Oh. Well, make sure you keep your eyes out, citizen. We'll be around if you find out anything." Alfred withdrew from the conversation, turning around to face away from the bar. He called for Matthew to follow him as he headed off in that direction.

"Wait!" Arthur called after them. They paused in their tracks, Alfred's body swiveling halfway around to face him. "Where are you going?"

"The vault."

He said it with so much certainty, as if it should be obvious. Arthur felt the urge to call out to them, warning them to be careful, but he suppressed it. Why should he care about these strangers anyways? They wore the strangest armor and carried themselves like they were better than everyone else just because they were soldiers. Or, Alfred did at least. What a pretentious arsehole.

Francissnapped him out of his thoughts when he hit him in the shoulder. "What the hell is wrong with you! Do you _want _to get me killed?"

Arthur pretended to consider it, rolling the thought around in his head. "That doesn't sound too bad."

"Oh shut up."

"So, who's Matthew to you?" He asked to avoid further questioning.

Francis changed his whole expression immediately, reflecting a passion of which he had seen numerous times on this Frenchman.

"Ah, _Mathieu. Mon amour, _my one and only... Let me tell you a story, Arthur."

Francis sat himself in one of the bar stools and propped his head on his hands dreamily.

"Oh, fantastic," the Brit murmured sarcastically.

"When I was but a boy, living with my family in the capital wasteland, there was a wayward stranger who enlightened my dull life with such luminescence that I absolutely could not live without! Arthur, you must understand, Matthew, he was my light, my savior, surely you can see why I left my home for him?"

Arthur could not. While Arthur knew of his friend's tendencies to act compulsively, he did not know why anyone would abandon the wealth and comfort that Francis had come from. Yes, Francis had told many stories of his home in the capital wasteland, a great tower that could be seen from miles around. He had time, money, air conditioner, the works. Why would he gamble all of that for some kid?

"Not really."

"Oh, Arthur, _mon ami, _you will. One day you will understand."

"Doubtful. But please, continue."

"But what is the point? If you do not know this feeling then I will never find the words to explain it to you." Francis slumped in his stool.

It wasn't a loss to Arthur, at least, that's what he told himself. He didn't care about Francis's love life.

"Oh, what a sad day," he said, sarcasm rolling off of his tongue.

"Well, if you insist..." Arthur had to withhold the urge to facepalm. "He was only a passing stranger, oh how I wish it could have been different... He left after only two days, Arthur. But I do not regret leaving for him. However, I do regret leaving so long _after _he had gone on his way, for it was a chore to track him down."

"But you found him?" Arthur can't believe he had become invested in this nonsense.

"Of course I did! When you truly love someone, your heart will lead the way, Arthur. It was only a matter of time before his lead him back to _moi._ But anyhow, I found him in DC, just on the outskirts of town. The was a bar there, a lively little tavern where you could stay the night if need be... he was there."

"Is this the same bar where you met Antonio and Gilbert?" Arthur thought he remembered a little story like that.

"_Oui!_ It is! But not quite yet, my friend. He was there, my Matthew. He was shocked to see me again, this is for sure. We drank, we sang, we drank some more... this bar, it was magical. I do not know what it was that made Matthew love me for that night, but I would give all that I have to be there once again, my arms around him, our bodies entwined together in the throes of-"

"Okay! That's enough of that." He cut him off.

"But I must finish my story!" The Frenchman whined in protest.

"Not if I have anything to say about it."

"But Arthur-"

"No."

Francis sighed, resting his head on the bartop. "Very well, but if you decide that you want to know the ending, I will be here."

"Note taken." Arthur was sure that he would never be bothered to ask, but he figured that it would be easier to accept it than deny his French friend.

"So, Alfred was it? What did you think of him?"

Arthur knew what he meant. "Francis, don't get your hopes up. He was loud and looked an awful lot like he wasn't all there. And did you see the way he spoke to us? How pretentious."

Francis smiled an awful smile. "_Honhonhon, _your words are intended to harm, but I see nothing but potential. You and Lovino are alike, _mon ami._"

"Lovino?"

"_Oui, _a barbed tongue to mask true love? Do not tell me you haven't noticed it too?"

This was all news to Arthur. "Lovino and Antonio? Are you kidding me?"

"I would never. They were practically making out when Gil and I found them last night~"

"Really? Maybe that's why he's missing. He must have been terribly embarrassed. Wait, why am I gossiping with _you_?" Arthur was almost disgusted with himself. Almost.

"Because you know it to be true!"

When Arthur remembered what the conversation was about, his face reddened and his hands becomes fists at his side.

"There is no 'true love' here! He was just some soldier passing through that I'd talked to _briefly. _At the most, I'd offer him a free drink!"

"Oh, so you _do _like him?"

In all honesty, Arthur didn't know, but he pushed those thought away for another day. The man might have been cute, but how could he say whether or not he liked someone based around a two minute conversation? Maybe Francis could gauge something like that, but Arthur wasn't about to.

"Don't be silly."

Arthur was saved from further questioning as Antonio and Gilbert reappeared on the opposite side of the clearing, slowing down from their run. They made it to the bar in no time, panting as Antonio supported himself on the table and Gilbert took a seat in the stool next to Francis.

"Do you need something to drink?" Arthur questioned when he realized how out of breath they were.

"Nah," Antonio breathed.

"Are you kidding? Artie, please tell me you have some of that water left," Gilbert pleaded.

"As a matter of fact," Arthur spun around to extract a bottle of water from the broken refrigerator behind him. "I do." He sat the warm bottle in front of Gilbert, who uncapped it and drank nearly half of its contents in one swig. His cheeks filled with water as he offered some to Antonio.

Antonio took the bottle gratefully, gulping down a few sips before handing the water back to Gilbert, who's cheeks were still full.

"Lovi is gone," Antonio moaned once he had caught his breath.

"How gone?" Francis asked.

"_Gone _gone. Gone enough for there to be some fresh tire tracks pulling up to the rock." Francis gasped.

"Someone kidnapped him?" Asked Francis.

"Looks like it."

Francis put his head back against the tabletop. "But who would have wanted Lovino other than... _slavers?"_

"That's the thing. We think it might _be _slavers. '_Which _slavers' is a better question."

Arthur stood by as he listened to his friends talk out the Lovino situation. "Never mind the kid, you three have bigger problems right now."

"The soldiers?" Antonio questioned. "_Sí_, we met them on the way back."

"Aren't you worried?" There was a pause.

"Nah," they all denied at once, speaking over each other.

"I could totally take their asses."

"There were only two of them..."

"Matthew wouldn't hurt _moi._"

"Wait, Matthew? Like, _Matthew_ Matthew?"

"_Oui! _Isn't it fantastic, Gil? It's true love, it has to be!" Francis sighed dreamily. Arthur would never understand this frog's obsession with 'true love'.

"Yeah, sure thing buddy." Arthur could tell that Gilbert must feel the same he did. He gave Francis a weak grin.

"Do not fear, Antonio. Surely Lovino will return to you as well."

Antonio put on his most shocked expression. "_Qué? _I'm not _in love _with Lovi... Francis, I've only know him a week-"

"Your point?" Antonio shut his mouth. Thinking for a moment. Arthur just wanted Francis to leave them alone... this whole 'love' ordeal was becoming rather repetitive.

"We need to go find him," Antonio finally spoke.

Francis sighed once again. "You are crazy, Antonio. He could be anywhere."

"I dunno, this sounds fun. It's a rescue mission, like in the comic books. Which I totally didn't read by the way. So lame."

"So you'll help me, Gilbert?" Antonio's eyes seemed hopeful and bright.

"Yeah, count me in. Raiding was starting to get boring anyways. I'm looking into the business of saving people now. Do you think it fits me, Antonio?"

"Uhm, _sí, amigo. _You'll make a fantastic hero."

Gilbert stood from his place at the bar, cracking his knuckles solely for affect. "Alright so where do we start?"

Arthur sighed. These three were crazy. The barkeep could never imagine taking on an adventure like this, and Gilbert just made up his mind like it was nothing. You might as well have asked him to accompany you to dinner, or maybe walk the dog.

Arthur knew what was going to happen now; Antonio, Gilbert, and Francis were going to take off for another six months. He didn't know why the thought had disappointed him, of course he had prepared for this already. They were going to leave with Lovino today anyways, it's not like their departure wasn't already in the works. Sometimes Arthur just wished that the time between their visits wasn't so boring or uneventful, save for the occasional interesting drifter. While acting as the barkeep for the only town until Memphis, Arthur had managed to see his fair share of oddities in the last thirty or so years. But he always felt like there was something more that he has yet to experience…

Maybe this whole fiasco would finally give him that opportunity. However, the thought was only just that, a thought, weak in the back of his mind. He picked up a glass and started working away at the clouded interior, just as he always did when his mind started to wonder. The three in front of him continued to talk over their plans, but Arthur could care less. He minded his own business, keeping to himself as the others worked something out.

Out of all of this mess that didn't include Arthur, which was always the case, one thing was for certain. He was going to stay well enough out of the way, just like he always did.

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_A/N: Yeah. Review. Ask questions. Go give Finem Pax Romana a review. Give everything a review. I like attention from strangers on the internet._


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